A few weeks ago we had  our 2nd attempt at engagement pictures. The first session got rained out, I was so bummed! David and I's schedules were getting busy and we wanted to get the pictures taken before the leaves fell so we knew we had to act fast. Luckily we were able to reschedule right away for the next week and we finally got our pictures taken by Laura from Life Art Photographs in Des Moines! It could not have been a more perfect day for them either! The sun was out, the leaves were the perfect colors, it was the warmest day for 2 weeks, there was no wind and it didn't rain! Laura was great to work with and  made it easy for David to get comfortable, I'm sure the beer at the sports bar down the street helped a little too ;) We started at Easter Lake in East Des Moines, she promised us we were safe as we drove down the self-proclaimed "scummiest road in town." Once we pulled into the park, it was exactly what I wanted for our pictures--a secluded lake with lots of trees and grass! Eventually we made it to downtown Des Moines for some cool spots at the bridge and near the sculpture garden. 

I was so paranoid about what to wear for these pictures! Thinking about what would be classic enough to not go out of fashion in 20 years and still make for pretty portraits to hang in our house someday. After looking at tons of inspiration photos on Pinterest I began to notice trends in the couples' outfits and photos that helped me develop my own guidelines as I prepared for the photos. 

• Wear complementary colors 
• Avoid matching outfits, its not the 90's with your twin brother
• Wear your favorite outfits, not everything has to be brand new and it will make you feel comfortable and like yourself!
• Add fun, personal props! David and I have had a few picnics while we dated and have always enjoyed our glasses of wine! Our picnic pictures turned out to be some of our favorites! 
• Think simple outfits! We had to change in the back of the photographer's SUV a few times so to save time and ease, we wore the same jeans and just changed our tops. 
• Alternate patterns and solid colors! That was my biggest observation while looking at inspiration photos. One of the people wore a pattern and the other wore a solid color. I think this made pictures cohesive without being matchy matchy. 
• Laugh! Some of my favorite photos seemed candid and sweet when we were laughing and enjoying each other's company
• Here's the link to my Pinterest board of inspiration photos

I am so excited to post some of our pictures and maybe give some inspiration to another couple about to get their pictures taken! 

My roommates and I had the wonderful privilege of adopting a 9 week old kitten, now 5 months old, from another college student earlier this fall. They previous owner named her Nala and we decided we loved it and wouldn't change it! My roommate that is her official owner LOVES Disney movies and our sorority mascot is a lion so having a little orange kitty named after the lioness from Lion King was purrrfect for us =) 

Nala's nicknames: Spider Kitty and Baby Girl
DOB: May 16, 2013
Favorite toy: a pole with a stuffed animal and jingle bells hanging off it
Favorite place to sleep: on top of the couch, closest to the window in the living room
Least favorite thing (pre-spaying): being held
What is Nala known for? Her ugly meow and being a rascal between 5-6am
Who does she sleep with? Brittany and Megan--mostly Megan

Nala is a beautiful little kitty with a bushy tail and long ear hairs. She used to be a little shit all the time before she was de-clawed and spayed. But really, she was a shit. She would claw the furniture and us because she didn't like to be held, but we always tried anyway knowing one day she would give in and love us! She got her first nickname, Spider Kitty, from crawling up the couches and ottoman by her claws and pulling her self around the base of the ottoman on her back! It was always funny to watch her. We played with a laser  pointer and she would chase it all day! Sprinting back and forth from one side of the apartment to the other, up the wall, sliding across the tile! She was hilarious! We love playing with her! As much as Baby Girl loved to play, she hated to cuddle! If it wasn't on her terms, she wasn't interested at all. She needed to be on her own surface and not super close to you and you better not expect to hold her for more than 10 seconds without her jumping out of your arms or scratching at you. We read on the internet that once kittens are spayed they become more cuddly and loving. We were a little skeptical that, that much of a personality change could come from a surgery but sure enough since she was spayed 2 weeks ago all she wants to do is sit in your arms and be snuggled! 

We are so happy we finally have a cuddly, loving baby! I kept thinking it was just her pain medication keeping her so mellow and as soon as we ran out she would be stand-offish again--nope! Its also wonderful now that she has her claws removed, we can play with her more now and hold her without getting nasty cuts all over our hands and arms. We were instructed by the vet to take it easy and not play too hard with her while she was recovering so I'm excited to make her jump and race all over the apartment after her toys! 

Its pretty amazing how much she runs our apartment and has us all wrapped around her little paw. She has more toys than any kitty should ever have or could play with! She has free roam of the apartment and has her special spots. One time a roommate was sitting in her spot and Nala didn't like it so she meow'd her ugly little meow and Steph immediately goes, "I know, I know, I'm moving Nala!" gets up, and moves to the opposite side of the apartment while Nala does a little circle and nestles into the couch. Spoiled. When Nala sleeps with me, I try to be as careful as I can not to move my feet into her way and disturb her... =/ When David comes to visit he brings her even more stuff from Target! The last time he visited he brought her a soft kitty bed with fake mink fur flaps to snuggle in--Yeah. She has just stole our hearts, looking for her is the first thing we look for when we come home and the last thing we do before we leave. We love her soo much! 

I posted 4 of my favorite videos of Nala below, check them out!

What a busy, crazy, EXCITING month!!
School has been keeping busy with some great clinic experiences at a local school and the UNI Speech Preschool! This next month will be crazy with projects and big tests but its nothing I haven't already done! =) Also my roommates and I got a kitten, but Baby Girl deserves her own post!

Just over 2 weeks ago, on September 12, 2013, my boyfriend, David, PROPOSED! It was completely unexpected and I was totally surprised! Here's our proposal story (I apologize for the 3rd person writing, I'm writing it once for the wedding website!):

David enlisted in the help of his siblings to pull off this surprise! Earlier that week his brother, Chris, made plans for a "family dinner" at Amigos Thursday night with Brittany and Brianna. The next day, Brianna asked Brittany if she could give her a ride to a local pond for a class project before dinner that Thursday. She instructed Brittany that she needed to photograph the pond for a class project but didn't have a ride. Brittany being completely oblivious to the secret plan, replied, "How many ponds do you need to visit? I know a few." 

Brittany and Brianna pull up to Big Woods Pond about 7:50pm that night and began walking around looking for the "perfect spot" to take this picture. They walked around a bend in the pond and Brianna said she wanted to turn back and go to a previous spot. Before Brittany could follow her she noticed a familiar face sitting on a park bench not too far ahead. David smiled at her and waved her over. 

Brittany was completely surprised to see him, but this wasn't the first time he tried to surprise her by arriving early for a visit. She didn't thinking much of it and sat down to ask about his day. After a few moments of catching up, David stands and makes the excuse, "Let's see if this boat I saw earlier is out there still," and pulls Brittany up off the bench. He grabs her hands and stares into her eyes and this is when Brittany's mind completely shuts down and the details get fuzzy. HE'S GOING TO PROPOSE!! While Brittany tries to maintain composure, David was probably saying something very sweet and romantic about how much he loved her, but no one really remembers what happened! He got down on one knee and asked her to be his wife! Cue the tears, hugging, I love you's, and phone calls home!

After it started to soak in Brittany's first comments were, "I wish I wasn't wearing gym shorts!" and, "Wait, did you skip Justin Timberlake to propose?! You must really love me!"

Brittany and David finally got their dinner at 10:30 that night after several phone calls and a few more tears!


He designed my beautiful ring all by himself! You'll have to check out the photos below! We are so excited and blessed to celebrate with our families and friends. I'm excited to keep blogging about updates and how wedding planning is going. I've been dreaming about this moment since I was a little girl and can't wait to spend the rest of my life with a man as charming, smart, and funny as David! Keep checking back for more wedding updates! =)

I. Love. Weddings. 

I do. They make me so happy. Watching the couple stare into each other's eyes with such love and happiness--how can you not be moved by it? The last two weekends I've had the pleasure of attending back-to-back weddings, so I've been a very happy girl! I love getting dressed up and seeing the different styles, and personal touches that makes each wedding so different and special. I also love taking little mental notes for my own wedding someday, lets face it, I already have a notebook full of ideas for myself.! Any of my roommates can vouch for my obsession, some even poke fun at my planning ahead, but hey, I'm a daydreamer, its what I do and luckily they love me for it! =)

Here are some gorgeous pictures I've found online, click the pictures to see the original source.

Things I love about weddings: